Tornadoes Beat the Hurricanes

The Harborfields girls’ lacrosse team is starting their season off on the right foot, beating the Westhampton Hurricanes in their first match of the year. This is an important win for the Lady Tornadoes, who had suffered a crushing defeat at the Hurricane’s hands last year. Everyone who was at the game knows that the Tornadoes are a completely different team this year.

There is no way that this year’s lacrosse team will be defeated that easily. From the opening whistle Grace Zagaja, Falyn Dwyer, Katherine Alnwick, and Hallie Simkins were dominating the draw, taking the ball from under the other team’s noses. Even with the new rule that has affected the draw, the Lady Tornadoes never seem to lose one. That is definitely going to be a key to the game this year, even if it is “weird to cheer on your girls for not being aggressive”, as Coach McGinty says.

The Tornadoes aren’t only dominating on the draw, they are also taking charge on the offensive side of the field. By incorporating everyone into the offense and executing plays perfectly the Harborfields girls were able to score eleven goals in their first game. Behind sophomore Hallie Simkins, and senior Grace Zagaja, each with three goals against the Hurricanes, the Tornadoes are going to pick apart the other teams’ defenses.

Finally, there’s no way that anyone can forget about the Tornadoes defense. There is never a quiet moment of the defensive end for Harborfields, between Grace Steinthal and Colleen Dwyer. It is nice to see such impeccable communication between the players on the field as well as those off the field. It is not hard to understand why the defenders cause the other teams to turn the ball over - there is never a moment where the Tornadoes are sitting back, they are always pressuring and in their opponents’ faces.

This year the Lady Tornadoes are going to be a force to be reckoned with in Division II. They will look to continue their winning streak against the Walt Whitman Wildcats on March 27.